a Joshua S. Kelly-USA TODAY Sports
For as good a head football coach as Bob Stoops is and the name-brand power that is represented by Oklahoma football, the year 2014 is one to forget for the Sooners. For the fourth time this season, Oklahoma played a ranked team. And for the fourth time, the Sooners were beaten. They were embarrassed by Clemson, 40-6, in the Russell Athletic Bowl Monday night.
If you look at Oklahoma’s schedule, you won’t find any quality wins. Yes, the Sooners beat Texas in a big rivalry game, but the Longhorns were inconsistent and a shell of the program we are used to seeing in Austin. The Sooners best West Virginia, which lost to Texas A&M in a bowl game today, an Aggie team that you’ll remember lost to Alabama 59-0.
In four attempts vs. ranked opponents, none higher than No. 12 in the polls, the Sooners went 0-4. Oklahoma lost close games to No. 14 Kansas State and No. 25 TCU. To be fair those two teams are now probably better than those rankings. But those losses are the high point of the Sooners’ forgettable 2014 season. A 48-14 loss to then No. 12 Baylor, and now this pathetic effort against No. 17 Clemson, show that when the lights were brightest, Oklahoma was truly at its worst.
By the time Oklahoma (8-5) scored tonight, the Clemson Tigers had already built a 40-0 lead, absolutely dominating in every phase of the game. And even then, the follies for the Sooners continued when the extra point was blocked. Clemson quarterback Cole Stoudt, playing his last game, entered the Russell Athletic Bowl with a rather pedestrian (by the college rating system) QB rating of 111.6. Against Oklahoma, Stoudt produced a nonsensical 428.4!
By contrast, the Sooners managed a meager 2.8 yards per pass, with Trevor Knight going 17-for-37 for just 103 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions. Not only did Stoops’ team look unprepared, but they again looked like what they have much of the season — a middle-of-the-road team that can beat up on the weaklings of the Big 12, but can’t defend itself against the top dogs on their schedule.
Ed Morgans is an ACC Basketball Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @writered21 and add him to your network on Google.
